GeroScience Interest Group (GSIG)

With the elderly showing the fastest population growth worldwide, it is imperative to accelerate efforts to fulfill their biomedical needs, including preventative measures that can reduce the overall burden of age-related diseases and disabilities. The elderly are often afflicted by multiple comorbidities and aging is acknowledged as the major risk factor for most chronic diseases and disabilities affecting the elderly. Extension of lifespan in laboratory animals is often accompanied by a delay in the appearance and progression of not one, but most diseases of aging simultaneously, as well as a slowing in age-related functional decline. That is, a slower rate of aging leads to an increase in healthspan, the ultimate goal of biomedical research.

The Geroscience Interest Group (GSIG) includes participation by 20 NIH Institutes with an interest in the biological mechanisms that drive the appearance of multiple diseases of the elderly. The group includes both intramural and extramural scientists. By developing a collaborative framework the group aims to accelerate and coordinate efforts to promote further discoveries on how the risk due to aging intersects with the common risks and mechanisms behind chronic diseases and conditions. Regular activities include monthly meetings, a quarterly seminar on Campus and a range of activities both inside and outside the NIH, including major conferences and summits, lectures and collaborations with other Federal and Non-Federal entities. In addition, the extramural branch of the GSIG promotes the publication of GSIG-centered Funding Opportunity Announcement for the extramural community. See our full site at https://www.nia.nih.gov/gsig.